Consumers worldwide are going green, and this is especially true in the cosmetic market. Over the past few years, growth in the market for cosmetics has been driven by products that use natural or herbal components. The market share of natural-based products has been increasing gradually, and companies are increasingly feeling pressurized to focus on sustainability and reduce their environmental footprints. Additionally, consumers are more aware and better informed than ever before. They are becoming conscious of the ingredients that go into the products that they use and are averse to chemicals that are known to cause side effects.

On the supply side, companies are engaging in advanced research of plant-derived peptides, encapsulated actives, active plant stem cells, complex extraction processes, and clinical testing to deliver products that are acceptable to the well-informed customers.

Indians have been traditionally inclined toward natural products for their beauty needs. India has a history and knowledge of using natural products. While consumers in the rest of the world have to be educated about the benefits of natural herbs, this knowledge is well inherited in India from generations. The need is for companies to translate the ancient ayurvedic recipes into modern easy to use formats with superior quality.

During the last decade, the herbal beauty care business has emerged as the new growth frontier for beauty business in India. The emphasis has been on the spectacular growth of the herbal and ayurvedic beauty products business. Today, the Indian cosmetics industry has a plethora of herbal cosmetic brands such as Forest Essentials, Biotique, Himalaya, Blossom Kochhar, VLCC, Dabur and Lotus, and many more are being added to the list all the time. In addition to a widening base of consumers, color cosmetics and anti-aging and anti-wrinkle creams are expected to be the future drivers of growth in this segment.

The market for ayurvedic cosmetic products in India is expected to grow at a rapid pace over the coming decades. The market is only beginning to get populated with ayurvedic brands and it will be a while until it gets too crowded. Ayurvedic manufacturers are investing in research and constantly coming up with new and innovative technology and products that are resulting in better and more effective ayurvedic cosmetics. Ayurvedic cosmetics also are still competing with synthetic products and they need to strive to ensure quality that is similar to synthetic brands.